THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday said there have been visible attempts to erase the history or take the people like Mahatma Gandhi out the minds of the people by replacing the picture of the father of the nation from the wall calendar and table diary published by the Khadi Village Industries Commission (KVIC) with the picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He said this while inaugurating the fair organised by the Khadi Board in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday. Instances like this can’t be ignored as these deeds are aimed at rehashing history. The proponents of the neo-liberal policies have no need to take khadi or the ideals of Gandhi along with them, which is evident from the fact the weavers and spinners in many north Indian states have not been fetching a wage equal to an MGNREGA worker, he said.
But in Kerala, the LDF is trying its best to support the traditional sector where the situation of spinners and weavers is much better than their counterparts in other north Indian states. The state government has earmarked a Budget allocation of Rs 18 crore for the modernisation of the sector and hiked the wages of spinners by 61 per cent and weavers by 40 per cent.
This doesn’t mean the weavers and spinners are in a good position now in Kerala, he said. The government has opened 16 khadi production centres apart from planning to switch to ‘solar charkas.’ The Khadi Village project was introduced with an objective of attracting more women into the sector which currently employ around 13,600 weavers and spinners.Besides this, people’s interest in Khadi products has to be revived. Khadi Onam fair is one such initiative of the Kerala Khadi Village Industries Board.
Khadi on ramp
A Khadi Fashion Show was organised by Apparel Training and Design Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, as part of the Khadi Onam fair, showcasing how tradition and fashion can be blended in Khadi clothing.
Presenting the modern makeover of Khadi, emerging trends were demonstrated on the ramp by a group of youngsters, including children. Models wearing purdahs, traditional attires, casuals and formals in hand-woven khadi were the attraction of the show. The Chief Minister also inaugurated the first sale of the Sakhavu shirt launched by the board at the function attended by board vice-chairperson Shobhana George.